


A Midway of Dreams

by mercy_angel_09



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/M, Kallura Month, Romance, Where Things Didn't Go To Crap Because of Space Meth AU, dorks falling in love, fairs and carnivals, making the best out of a bad situation, very minor AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-23
Updated: 2017-09-23
Packaged: 2019-01-04 13:13:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,897
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12169575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mercy_angel_09/pseuds/mercy_angel_09
Summary: At an earth style fair, the Princess of Altea shares a ride on the Ferris wheel with a stranger and wonders if there's more than just fun and games on the midway.Kallura Month 2017 - Day 23 - Cotton Candy Eyes





	A Midway of Dreams

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Sideshow_Ericka](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Sideshow_Ericka).



> A few things to clear up:
> 
> 1) Zarkon has not gone apples and bananas and is still the Black Paladin. Which means Alfor is still the Red Paladin and so on down the line. 
> 
> 2) The timeline is hella fuzzy. Don't think about it too hard. Just trust me.
> 
> 3) The 'verse is a bit more in line with Defenders of the Universe and Voltron Force, in that there's a Galaxy Alliance kind of system in place and Earth knows about aliens and there's been some culture spread so the fair they're at isn't on Earth but has a lot of Earth like traits.

“Next!” the carnie barked and Allura made her way up the rickety metal stairs and flashed her wristband.

“You alone?” the carnie asked she settled herself in the gondola of the Ferris wheel.

“Yes,” she answered, and hoped that her irritation wasn’t bleeding through. She was supposed to meet her friends at the fair but every single one of them had bailed on her – after she’d arrived and paid to get in. Determined to have as much fun as she could by herself since admission was pricey and there was a no refunds policy, she’d splurged on the all you can ride wristband and was trying her hardest to eat her way through the fair.

“Hey, any other single riders in line?” the carnie called and Allura grimaced. She did not need a pity rider, thank you very much. “Safety issue,” the carnie said as someone started pushing forward through the line. “Need a certain amount of weight in the gondola.”

“Oh,” she answered dumbly, because really, what else could she say?

“Take a seat kid,” the carnie instructed and the young man did as told. The carnie fastened the lap bar, gave it a jiggle for good measure, and then hit the control to move them back so the next gondola could be unloaded and loaded.

Allura gave him a small smile, but his stone faced expression didn’t change.

“Uh, hi, I’m Allura,” she said, holding out her hand.

The stranger looked at her face, then her hand, then shrugged. “Keith,” he answered as he took her hand, pumped it once and then let go.

“Are you here alone?”

“Why, is it a problem if I am?” he asked defensively.

“Good heavens no,” Allura said, pulling a face. “What’s your story? Friends ditch you at the last moment after you’d already paid for your ticket and entered?”

He cocked his head. “Is that what happened to you?”

She flushed. “Oh…uh…”

“That sucks,” he said as he turned his attention forward. “I’m here by myself because I like the musical act. Not enough to pay for the good seats or anything, but I figured I’d wander over to the stage and listen to a few sets.”

“That sounds nice,” Allura sighed. “And yes, my friends all ditched me. So I’m going to ride all the rides and eat until I make myself sick and have the most fun _without them._ ”

Keith smirked. “Nice.”

“So you’re really only here for the concert?” she asked.

He shrugged again. “Well the exhibit halls are kinda cool.”

“I haven’t gone through them yet,” she sighed. “I was doing the carnival games and riding rides and eating myself sick. I suppose I should, though.”

“If you want to,” he said.

“Fair point,” she said with a grin.

“So where are your bodyguards,” Keith said after a short period of silence.

“My what now?” Allura spluttered, looking at her companion in panic.

He gave her a droll stare. “You may think you’re incognito, but I know you’re Princess Allura of Altea.”

“Oh quiznak,” she mumbled as she hung her head. “So far nobody’s recognized me.”

“I wouldn’t bet on that,” he said as he turned his gaze over the fairgrounds. It was dark now, the neon lights of the midway and rides blinking brilliantly at their feet.

“For your information I do not need a bodyguard. Besides, anyone stupid enough to tangle with me will answer to Voltron and frankly a giant robot is a great deterrent,” she huffed.

“Oh, yeah, your dad is one of the paladins,” he murmured.

“And if they think he’s bad, wait until Zarkon finds out his favorite niece has been messed with. He’ll bring the entire Galra Empire down on their heads,” she continued.

“I believe it,” he said with a chuckle.

“So what’s your story?” she asked. “Can you beat a royal out amongst the peasants?”

“Uh, no,” he answered. “I’m pretty boring, actually.”

“No interesting tidbits to share? Really?”

“Uh, I’m part Galra, but I don’t think that qualifies as interesting.”

Allura looked him over, noting that by all accounts he looked human. “You’re sure?”

“I’m sure. Apparently my stunning lack of social skills is a common Galra trait,” he sighed.

The two lapsed into silence as the Ferris wheel started to move in earnest, the view of the midway cheerful on this warm evening. Aftre three rotations in silence, Keith turned to Allura. “So…did your friends really ditch you after you got here?”

She groaned. “We were supposed to meet here. I showed up and paid for my ticket in, went to the meeting spot…and not five minutes later a flood of text messages all apologizing that they weren’t going to make it. Since it’s not exactly cheap to get in and there’s a no refunds policy…” She shrugged. “I’m determined to have fun without them.”

“Would, you, uh, mind if we just kept hanging out?” Keith asked. “I mean it’s been okay by myself, but I dunno, it’s been nice talking to you.”

Allura brightened. “That sounds marvelous.”

He managed a shy smile and a small flutter erupted in her stomach. He was handsome, with those mysterious dark eyes and boyish features. Best of all he didn’t seem particularly intimidated by the fact that she was royalty – something that usually sent others reeling and tended to stilt her interactions with them.

“So what do we ride next?” he asked as they lurched to a stop at the top of the Ferris wheel as unloading began.

“I’m going to nix anything that goes in circles,” she answered. “I’ve eaten so much junk already I’m afraid I’ll revisit it.”

“We could go through the fun house,” he suggested.

“Oh, excellent idea. I like making faces in the warped mirrors,” she said with a smile. “Maybe meander over, play a few games along the midway?”

“I’ll win you something,” he said. “You know, if you’d like. Or not. Up to you.”

“I think playing a few games will be fun, but you do know they’re rigged so people can’t win, right?”

“Well yeah but that’s when you need to outsmart them,” Keith said with a grin.

“Ooh,” Allura said, her eyes sparkling with amusement. “Isn’t that cheating?”

“Nah, it’s how you play the game on their level,” he answered.

When they were finally off the Ferris wheel they walked along the midway, trying to pick a game. They were debating the merits of the dart throw over the coin toss when someone called out to Keith. Turning they saw a young man flanked by two others waving him over at the target shooting booth. Keith groaned but started to walk over, Allura flicking her gaze between them. They looked to be close in age, and where Keith was under a cloud of resigned acceptance, the other boy was grinning madly.

“I didn’t think this was your scene,” the boy said and his two companions chuckled.

“I wanted to see the band performing tonight,” Keith answered. “There’s absolutely nothing weird about that.”

The other boy shrugged. “Fair enough.” His glanced shifted towards Allura and he gave what he assumed to be a charming smile but only succeeded in making him look goofy. “And who is your lovely friend?”

“I’m Fala,” Allura said, cutting Keith off before he could blow her identity. “Altean, as you can see.”

“What do you think of the Earth style fair?” the boy asked. “Pretty fun, right?”

“Yes, we’ve got nothing like this on Altea,” she answered.

“Name’s Lance, by the way,” he said, pressing his hand to his chest. “The big guy is my buddy Hunk, and the short stack is Katie. But we all call her Pidge.”

“It’s very nice to meet you. How do you know Keith?” Allura asked.

“Oh, we all go to school together,” Lance answered.

“Yeah, Keith and Lance are rivals,” Hunk said.

“Well at least in Lance’s mind,” Pidge added.

Allura glanced over at Keith who rolled his eyes. “So are you here to ride the rides or what?” he asked.

“What? Oh, no,” Lance chuckled. “I’m showing Kalternecker.”

“What’s a Kalternecker?” Allura asked.

“His prize Holstein,” Pidge answered. “A cow.”

“Ah, yes, these fairs were an earth tradition to show off livestock,” Allura said, recalling some of the tidbits she’d looked up before coming. “They still do that?”

“Sure,” Hunk said. “There’s also cooking, sewing, trade booths to show off new products…”

“Yes, yes, of course,” Allura said cutting him off. “Well, Keith and I should be on our way.”

“Wait a second,” Lance said, crossing his arms and glaring at Keith. “Is this a date?”

“Actually, we just met and since we’re both here alone we decided to hang out together. Last time I checked it wasn’t illegal to make friends,” Keith said, glaring right back.

Lance held his hands up. “Hey, chill out man, it was just a question.” He turned to Allura and waggled his eyebrows. “If you get bored of old stick in the mud here, you can come find me. I’d be more than happy to escort you this evening.”

“Thank you, but no thanks. Keith and I are having a perfectly wonderful time,” Allura said before she looped her arm through Keith’s and starting tugging him away from the booth. “It was nice to meet you!”

Lance sagged as they walked away, Pidge reaching up and patting his shoulder. “Crash and burn. Bummer.”

“Oh stuff it, Pidge.”

Once they were out of earshot of Lance, Hunk, and Pidge, Allura turned to Keith. “Well, they were interesting.”

“Sorry about that. Lance flirts with any girl who’s breathing.”

“If he didn’t try so hard, he’d probably be more successful,” she noted, causing Keith to snicker. “Ooh, cotton candy!”

Keith looked over to where Allura’s attention was focused and saw the vendor stand selling cotton candy, caramel apples, and popcorn. Fairly standard for a carnival midway so he didn’t think much of it, but to an Altean it was probably mysterious and new. “Want a bag?”

“Oh, could we? Cotton candy isn’t something we have on Altea. Really we don’t care much for sweets but there’s something nice about indulging every once in a while,” she said with a dreamy sigh.

Keith steered them towards the booth and got into line. Several other aliens were waiting for the earth treats, a handful of humans mixed in. When they got to the counter, Keith asked for a bag of cotton candy and then paid for it before Allura could even reach for her wallet. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“Yeah, but I wanted to,” he said as he shyly handed her the bag filled with the pink and blue confection. Under the bright lights of the stand he noticed that her eyes were the same color as the spun sugar. She was beautiful and so far out his league that he had a moment of despair of actually getting to see her again after this night.

“You’re very sweet,” she said before leaning over and pressing a soft kiss to the corner of his mouth.

He flushed and then tried to cover his embarrassment with a cough. “So…fun house?”

Allura finished her bite of cotton candy, twisted the top of the bag closed, then took his hand. “Yes, fun house.”

It was going to be a wonderful night.


End file.
